Onondaga Nation man killed in one-car crash in Syracuse

Syracuse, NY – Speed and alcohol may have contributed to a one-car crash that killed an Onondaga Nation man late Wednesday, Syracuse police said.

Thomas E. Hill, 44, was driving his 1997 Ford pickup truck south on Lafayette Road about 11: 30 p.m. when the vehicle went out of control and hit a utility pole in front of 211 Lafayette Road, Sgt. Tom Connellan said.

Syracuse Fire Department and Rural Metro ambulance crews removed Hill from the wreckage. He was taken to Upstate University Hospital where he was pronounced dead, Connellan said.

An open container of alcohol was found in the truck, Connellan said. Toxicology tests will be done to show whether Hill was intoxicated, he said.

It also appeared that Hill was not wearing a seat belt when the crash occurred, Connellan said.